Patent GB-190520006-A (GB)
Title: Machine for Distributing Mail Matter or other Articles.
Inventor: BARRY WILLIAM
Filed: 1905-10-03
Granted: 1906-07-19
Abstract: 20,006. Barry, W. Oct. 3. Mechanical dispatch apparatus.- The machine is designed to enable an operator to see one by one a number of letters &c. and, by pressing suitable keys, to distribute them to various receptacles or points of delivery. Printing - mechanism for postmarking the letters may be combined with the machine. The Figures show elevations of the principal parts of the machine. The letters resting on their bottom edges, travel to the right on the table 8, Fig. 7, and are pushed between feed-rollers on the shaft 28, 32 by means of a spring- actuated pusher 14. The address of the letter, now resting on the plate 71, is read by the operator and the letter is sent to its proper box by pressing the corresponding key 138. This key deflects one of a vertical series of fingers 104 and also one vertical set of several horizontal series of fingers 113. These two actions of the key determine the particular box 80 to receive the letter. The letter is first pushed down by the pusher 79, and then travels down between the fixed bars 98 and the endless conveyer 91 pressed towards the bars by springs. It then travels along one of the curved plates 106 and is carried horizontally by the endless conveyer 81 until it drops into its box. The fingers 104, 113 are fixed to rock-shafts 105, 115. Each rockshaft 105 is rocked by a connecting-rod 128, Fig. 22, attached to a pivoted bail 129, pressed down by a projection 143 on the key lever 137. The rockshafts 115 of -each vertical set of boxes 80 are worked by a single rod 133, Fig. 7, connected to a lever 134, Fig. 22; actuated by a bail 136 and projection 144. The key levers are pressed backwards by hand and are normally pressed down by the machine. On pressing a key lever 137 backwards, the bell-crank lever 176, 174, Figs. 7 and 11, is operated and the connecting-rod 168 pressed down. A projection is then rocked from beneath the arm 162, which is pulled down by a spring so to make the pawl 161 engage with the constantlyrotating ratchet-wheel 151. The arm 162 is thus carried round so as to raise the arm 23 and -allow the arm 178 to fall. The arm 23 is connected to the lever 192 by a rod 22, and the lever 192 carries a transverse horizontal bar 190 which engages with the projection 191 and presses the key lever down as stated above. A handle 195 on the lever 192 enables the operator to press the key lever down by hand. All the key levers are locked, until a letter has dropped into its box, by means of a bar 182, Fig. 11, carried by the bellcrank lever 183 operated by the arm 178 and connecting-rod 184. The rod 22 also actuates the feed mechanism through the arms 21, 18 and the rock-shaft 19. The arm 18 is connected to the rod 15 which carries the feed block 14, and is connected to the feed-block 79. The feed-roller shaft 28 rotates continuously and drives the feedroller shaft 32 by means of overlapping friction disks 40, 41. The disk 41 is adjustably attached to its shaft 32 and has a gap which prevents the disk 40 from driving it more than one revolution at a time. The shaft 32 carries the printing-roll for cancelling the stamp &c., and is allowed to rotate when the catch 47 is removed from a notch in the disk 41. This catch is operated by the rod 49 and arm 18. The friction of the letter between the friction rolls gives the initial turn to the disk 41 when free to move. The boxes may have pivoted floors, which, when the boxes are full, depress a system of levers and ring a bell; and the ends of the boxes may have spring flaps hinged at their bottom edges to prevent the letters from falling out.